City to lift 483-day state of emergency

OTTAWA – The 483-day long state of emergency the City of Ottawa has endured will end just after midnight tonight (June 22).

Mayor Jim Watson announced today (July 21) the State of Emergency in Ottawa will be lifted at 12:01 a.m. on Thursday, July 22.

The State of Emergency was declared in response to the COVID-19 pandemic on March 25, 2020.

“The city will now move one level down in its emergency management to ‘Activated Operations,’” city staff released in a statement today. “While the city continues the activation of the Municipal Emergency Plan to manage the COVID-19 response, the powers afforded under the State of Emergency are no longer deemed necessary. Despite taking a significant step towards the return of a healthy and open city, important public health measures remain in place. Check the Ottawa Public Health website and ottawa.ca for the latest guidelines.”

The city has seen positive signs in the fight against COVID-19 with very low incidence of new cases, including several recent days with few to no new cases and no new outbreaks. The other key measure is the excellent vaccination uptake by residents, with 83 per cent of adults with one dose and 68 per cent with two.

“The management of the vaccination distribution continues to be a priority for the city,” staff said. 

Visit ottawa.ca or OttawaPublicHealth.ca for more on Ottawa’s vaccination distribution plan, including information about: 

• Accessibility 
• First Nation, Métis and Inuit populations 
• Pharmacies 
• Second doses 
• Transportation to and from appointments 
• Health cards 
• Health care workers 
• Searchable clinic map 

“Follow the city’s social media channels and sign up for the COVID-19 vaccination update e-subscription for regular news on the vaccine roll-out,” staff said. “For more information on city programs and services, visit ottawa.ca or call 3-1-1 (TTY: 613-580-2401).”